Suction hose supporting structure for upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to canister type

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein is a suction hose supporting structure of an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type. The vacuum cleaner comprises a main body having a suction port and a discharge port, a suction unit having a dust collecting port and a discharge opening, an extension pipe and a handle detachably installed to the main body, a suction hose connected at one end with the suction port and selectively connected at the other end with the discharge opening or the handle, a bending prevention member installed at one side of the suction port to support the suction hose in a round state, and a fixing ring installed to one side of the suction hose and having a hook. When the vacuum cleaner is used as the upright type, the suction hose is prevented from being bent, thereby minimizing resistance in a flow passage.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type, and, more particularly, to a suction hose supporting structure of an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type, which prevents a suction hose of a soft material connecting a discharge opening of a suction unit with a suction port of a main body from being bent when the vacuum cleaner is used as the upright type, thereby reducing resistance in a flow passage through which foreign substances and air are induced.

2. Description of the Related Art

A vacuum cleaner is a household appliance which sucks dust and other foreign substances scattered on floors, walls, small gaps and the like in a room via a strong suction force from a negative pressure generated by driving a fan motor and operating a vacuum pump, and then collects the dust and the other foreign substances using a dust collecting filter positioned therein.

According to shapes and using postures, the vacuum cleaners can be classified into a canister type vacuum cleaner, which provides convenience in corner cleaning and movement while allowing easy replacement of a brush and a nozzle, and an upright type vacuum cleaner, which provides convenience in maintenance and allows easy cleaning of a large space.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a conventional upright type vacuum cleaner.

The conventional upright type vacuum cleaner comprises a suction unit 100 having wheels 105 attached to a lower surface thereof and serving to suck dust on a floor, a main body 200 having components such as motor and the like contained therein, and an upright type handle 300.

For the vacuum cleaner constructed as above, the suction unit 100 is formed at the lower surface with a suction port (not shown) to which a brush is attached and through which dust removed by the brush is sucked into the suction unit. Then, the sucked dust flows along with air, and is collected via a filter, while the air is discharged to the outside.

The conventional upright type vacuum cleaner has a merit in that, since the suction unit has a wider area than an associated portion of the main body to allow the vacuum cleaner to stand upright thereon, the conventional upright type vacuum cleaner is able to clean a wider area in a room while moving thereon, and can be maintained in an upright state after finishing the cleaning operation. However, since it is necessary to perform the cleaning operation with the suction unit facing the floor, it is difficult to perform the cleaning operation of narrow spaces such as corners or gaps between pieces of furniture. Accordingly, there is a need of an improved vacuum cleaner which overcomes these problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a suction hose supporting structure for an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type, which comprises a main body constituting the canister type, and a suction unit independent of the main body and adapted to allow the main body to be detachably mounted thereon in an upright state, thereby enabling conversion of the vacuum cleaner from the upright type to the canister type or vice versa according to whether or not the main body is assembled to the suction unit.

In addition, according to the present invention, the suction hose supporting structure prevents a suction hose of a soft material connecting a discharge opening of the suction unit with a suction port of the main body from being bent, thereby reducing resistance in a flow passage through which foreign substances and air are induced.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a suction hose supporting structure for an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type, comprising: a main body having a suction port and a discharge port formed thereon, and including a suction device inside the suction port; a suction unit having a dust collecting port and a discharge opening, on which the main body is detachably installed; an extension pipe and a handle detachably installed to the main body, and having a hollow inner space to define a flow passage along which air containing foreign substances is induced; a suction hose connected at one end with the suction port, and selectively connected at the other end with the discharge opening or the handle; and a bending prevention member installed at one side of the suction port to support the suction hose in a round state.

Preferably, the suction hose supporting structure further comprises a fixing ring installed at one side of the suction hose and having a hook positioned on a circumferential surface thereof so as to be hung on one side of the main body.

Preferably, the main body has a fastening boss formed at an upper end corresponding to the bending prevention member, and an insertion groove formed at the side corresponding to the fixing ring.

Preferably, the bending prevention member comprises a round panel on which the suction hose is seated, and a coupling hole part formed at a lower end of the round panel and to which the fastening boss is coupled. Here, preferably, the main body has a rib formed around a portion separated a predetermined distance from the fastening boss so as to be brought into close contact with an inner wall of the coupling hole part. In addition, preferably, the rib has a seating groove formed around the rib and into which lower ends of the round panel and the coupling hole part are inserted.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a conventional upright type vacuum cleaner;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a vacuum cleaner according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a suction hose supporting structure of the vacuum cleaner according to the present invention in which a bending prevention member is installed;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the suction hose supporting structure according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a fixing ring of the suction hose supporting structure according to the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the bending prevention member of the suction hose supporting structure according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings as follows.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a vacuum cleaner according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a suction hose supporting structure of the vacuum cleaner according to the present invention in which a bending prevention member is installed to the vacuum cleaner.

An upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted into a canister type vacuum cleaner according to the present invention comprises: a main body 10 having a suction port 12 and a discharge port 14 and having a predetermined space defined therein; a suction unit 15 having a dust collecting port and a discharge opening 18, and on which the main body is detachably installed; an extension pipe 30 and a handle 20 detachably installed to the main body 10 and having a hollow inner space to define a flow passage along which air containing foreign substances is induced; a suction hose 70 connected at one end with the suction port 12 and selectively connected at the other end with the discharge opening 18 or the handle 20; a bending prevention member 80 installed at one side of the suction port 12 to support the suction hose 70 in a round state; and a fixing ring 90 installed to one side of the suction hose 70, and having a hook 92 provided to a circumferential surface thereof so as to be hung on the one side of the main body 10.

With this structure, when converting the vacuum cleaner from the upright type shown in FIG. 2 to the canister type, the suction hose 70 is separated from the discharge opening 18 and coupled to the handle 20, with extension pipe 30 and the handle 20 detached from the main body 10, and the main body 10 is separated from the suction unit 15, thereby constituting the canister type vacuum cleaner.

The main body 10 is formed with a fastening boss 11 which is separated a predetermined distance from the suction port 12 to the discharge opening 18 side, and to which the bending prevention member 80 is fastened by means of bolt and nut. Additionally, the main body 10 is formed with an insertion groove 13 at one side thereof corresponding to the discharge opening 18 side such that the hook 92 of the fixing ring 90 is caught by the insertion groove. Thus, this structure can prevent the suction hose 70 from being hung down on a floor outside the main body due to movement of the main body 10 and the suction unit 15 when the vacuum cleaner is used as the upright type, thereby providing an appealing appearance to the vacuum cleaner while preventing the suction hose from contacting a user or furniture.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the suction hose supporting structure according to the present invention, and FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the fixing ring of the suction hose supporting structure according to the present invention.

The bending prevention member 80 comprises a round panel 82 on which the suction hose 70 is seated, and a coupling hole part 84 formed at a lower end of the round panel 82 and to which the fastening boss 11 is coupled. Since the suction hose 70 is a corrugated pipe made of a soft material, it is likely to be bent if it extends between the suction port 12 and the discharge opening 18 as shown in FIG. 5. However, if the suction hose 70 is seated on the round panel 82, the suction hose 70 becomes a round shape toward the discharge opening 18, thereby minimizing flow resistance in the suction hose 70.

As shown in FIG. 6, the coupling hole part 84 has a hollow shape such that the fastening boss 11 is inserted thereinto. In this regard, the main body 10 has a rib 11 a formed along a portion separated a predetermined distance from the fastening boss 11, and a seating groove 11 b formed along the rib 11 a such that lower ends of the round panel 82 and the coupling hole part 84 are inserted therein. Thus, when the bending prevention member 80 is fitted to the fastening boss 11, the rib 11 a is brought into close contact with an inner wall of the coupling hole part 84 while the coupling hole part 84 and the round panel 82 are fitted into the seating groove 11 b, thereby suppressing shaking of the bending prevention member 80.

Operation of the upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to the canister type according to the present invention will be described hereinafter.

When a user wants to use the vacuum cleaner as the canister type, one end of the suction hose 70 is first separated from the discharge opening 18, and coupled to the fastening hole section 22 of the handle 20, with extension pipe 30 and the handle 20 detached from the main body 10, thereby constituting the canister type vacuum cleaner. Then, after the main body 10 is separated from the suction unit 15, a cleaning operation can be performed using the vacuum cleaner as the canister type.

When using the vacuum cleaner as the upright type, the main body 10 is first coupled to an upper surface of the suction unit 15 so as to stand upright, as shown in FIG. 2, followed by coupling the handle 20 and the extension pipe 30 to the main body 10. Then, the suction hose 70 is inserted into the discharge opening 18, thereby constituting the upright type vacuum cleaner.

At this time, the suction hose 70 is prevented from being bent by seating the suction hose 70 on the round panel 82 of the bending prevention member 80, and from deviating from the side of the main body 10 by inserting the hook 92 of the fixing ring 90 into the insertion groove 13.

As such, for the upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to the canister type according to the present invention, since the suction hose 70 connecting the suction unit 15 with the main body 10 is prevented from being bent or from deviating from the main body 10, it is possible to minimize the flow resistance in the suction hose while allowing the efficient cleaning operation without causing contact between the suction hose and the user or furniture.

According to the present invention, the suction hose supporting structure for the upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to the canister type comprises the bending prevention member positioned at one side of the suction port on an upper end of the main body, and the fixing ring formed to allow the suction hose to be brought into close contact with the main body, so that, when the vacuum cleaner is used as the upright type, the suction hose is prevented from being bent, thereby minimizing flow resistance in a flow passage, which leads to prevention of noise during a cleaning operation and to reduction of power waste during the cleaning operation.

In addition, the suction hose is secured to a side of the main body by means of the bending prevention member and the fixing ring, so that the suction hose is prevented from being hung down outside the main body on a floor, and from contacting a user or furniture during the cleaning operation, thereby ensuring an efficient cleaning operation.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. 

1. A suction hose supporting structure of an upright type vacuum cleaner capable of being converted to a canister type, comprising: a main body having a suction port and a discharge port formed thereon, and including a suction device inside the suction port; a suction unit having a dust collecting port and a discharge opening, on which the main body is detachably installed; an extension pipe and a handle detachably installed to the main body, and having a hollow inner space to define a flow passage along which air containing foreign substances is induced; a suction hose connected at one end with the suction port, and selectively connected at the other end with the discharge opening or the handle; and a bending prevention member installed at one side of the suction port to support the suction hose in a round state.
 2. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 1, further comprising: a fixing ring installed at one side of the suction hose and having a hook positioned on a circumferential surface thereof so as to be hung on one side of the main body.
 3. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a fastening boss formed on an upper end corresponding to the bending prevention member, and an insertion groove formed at the side corresponding to the fixing ring.
 4. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 1, wherein the bending prevention member comprises a round panel on which the suction hose is seated, and a coupling hole part formed at a lower end of the round panel and to which the fastening boss is coupled.
 5. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 3, wherein the main body has a rib formed around a portion separated a predetermined distance from the fastening boss so as to be brought into close contact with an inner wall of the coupling hole part.
 6. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 5, wherein the rib has a seating groove formed therearound, and into which lower ends of the round panel and the coupling hole part are inserted.
 7. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 4, wherein the main body has a rib formed around a portion separated a predetermined distance from the fastening boss so as to be brought into close contact with an inner wall of the coupling hole part.
 8. The suction hose supporting structure according to claim 7, wherein the rib has a seating groove formed therearound, and into which lower ends of the round panel and the coupling hole part are inserted. 